The IFMIF-DONES team, the driving force behind the project, relies on professionals with a spectacular background in the field of engineering and research. They bring their previous experience and knowledge together with great enthusiasm, turning the day-to-day work into an exciting place where all the steps that have been taken from the beginning can be put into practice. They’d like to introduce Joaquín Mollá today to highlight his role within the team.

Joaquín Mollá (Madrid, 1963) was part of the IFMIF/EVEDA Project Team (Rokkasho) for three years, as one of the European experts in the coordination group of the project. Subsequently, he has coordinated the Spanish participation in the IFMIF-DONES project for several years and has been directly involved in the contribution to the accelerator systems, Li systems, irradiation area systems and control systems. His work is now focused on the activities in which Ciemat is involved related to the Li loop systems.

According to Mollá, his participation in the IFMIF-DONES project is the natural consequence of the evolution of his activities in Fusion Technology. It was in 1989 that he attended his first international conference, in Kyoto. There, he participated in a discussion panel on the need for a Fusion-specific neutron source. It was the first time he heard of it. The start of the IFMIF/EVEDA project in 2007 was his opportunity to actively participate in a venture that he considers essential for the realisation of Fusion energy.

He graduated in Physics at the Autonomous University of Madrid (1987) and obtained his PhD at the Autonomous University of Madrid in 1994. His academic curriculum also includes a post-doctoral stay at the Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe in 1995-1996.

Since he joined Ciemat in 1988, and before his participation in the IFMIF-DONES programme, his lines of research were framed within the study of materials for their application in Nuclear Fusion. The evolution of the European fusion programme over the years, the needs for the design and construction of ITER first and for DEMO later, as defined in the international fusion programmes, modulated the different activities and participation in projects, generally of an international nature. The most important contributions were framed within the study of insulating and dielectric materials with fusion applications, including the development of measurement techniques under radiation. He also participated in the study of materials by simulation with molecular dynamics codes and Monte Carlo methods with work on the study of defects in quartz and diamond produced by radiation and the study of tritium diffusion in these same materials.

The IFMIF-DONES team thanks Joaquín for his dedication and good work!